Keep guns out out of meetings (EDIT)

As Monroe County commissioners raise the issue of whether they should be able to carry concealed weapons in their courthouse chambers, residents' initial reactions might parallel their personal views about gun rights.

But, regardless of how one interprets the Second Amendment's right of every citizen to bear arms, the answer is complicated.

Certainly, incidents in which the members of the public have threatened, attacked or killed public officials have made headlines periodically across the nation, so it's easy to imagine that unstable or violent individuals could get worked up enough over government actions to lash out with a weapon.

In 2010, for example, a man walked into a Florida school board meeting, seemingly angry with the board over his wife's job, and fired several shots — missing his targets — and then killed himself.

It's a frightening prospect that public officials, called by civic duty, should have to fear for their lives in the course of doing their jobs.

But allowing the officials to carry guns doesn't necessarily mean they will be safer.

Both the top county law enforcement officer and the county prosecutor have said they don't think it's a necessary step.

Monroe County Sheriff Tilman Crutchfield has said he'd be willing to work out a way for a deputy to be present during meetings to help commissioners feel safer. But, in a letter to the board, he said he felt allowing commissioners to carry weapons during meetings would "unnecessarily create an unstable security environment in the Monroe County Courthouse."

And there are unfortunate "friendly fire" situations in recent months where events back up the sheriff's opinion.

On New Year's Eve, an off-duty agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms followed a robbery suspect outside a pharmacy in New York. As he struggled with the man, a retired police lieutenant ran over from a nearby business and, thinking he understood the situation, opened fire, killing the agent.

It's important to give weight to the opinions of the people who are put in charge of public safety and enforcing the law in Monroe County.

An "unstable security environment" is exactly what Monroe County commissioners want to avoid, so deferring to the judgment of public-safety experts and working out other options to enhance safety might be a good alternative to turning the county board chambers into an armed camp.

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